Princes Don't Do Laundry
by PixelButterfly
Summary: Once upon a time, Wang So was bored, so he decided to annoy his favorite water maid, Hae Soo. Takes place around that time Soo was a water maid. Fluff. Laundry. Wang So is a dork.


"Your majesty, what are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?"

"It looks like you've finally gone mad."

"That's no way to speak to a prince."

"A prince should not be knee deep in river water with a basket of laundry."

Soo stared with an open mouth as Wang So grinned up at her from the stream. He clutched her work basket under one arm, steadying the piles of laundry against his hip.

Imperial Prince Wang So, fourth son of Taejo Wang Geon, wore a rough tunic and torn trousers rolled up to his knees, revealing scarred calves. "Look! I stole these from Jung," he declared, motioning toward his clothing. "He has an entire collection of them hidden beneath his book trunk.

Holding the back seam of her skirt, Soo pressed a hand to her knee to ease her way down the slope. The packed dirt seemed smoother than usual and Soo felt less strain on her knee as she limped to where the Prince stood with a stupid grin on his lips. "If someone were to see you, your majesty-"

"They'd shout that a peasant was stealing…" he examined the contents of the basket with a quizzical eye. "Are these Yo's robes?"

"They're the King's curtains," Soo muttered in exasperation. She finally made it to the shoreline and stood straight. "Your majesty, please give me the basket and leave before someone catches you."

"I didn't even know Father's curtains were washed by water maids," So snorted as he pointed to the piles of silk. "Alright, Hae Soo, sit down and tell me how this works. Do I hit it first and then put it in the water or do I put it in the water and then hit it?"

They stared at each other in silence, only the rustling of trees and the chirping of birds filling the void. "Your majesty," Soo waded out into the icy water, feeling her skirts begin the weigh her down. Soo pressed her hands to the basket in So's grip, trying to take the frayed container from the Prince.

She lost their battle of wills when Wang So leaned down and conked his forehead against hers. "Ah!" Soo exclaimed, pressing a hand to her forehead. She glared at So as he barked with laughter.

"Come on, Hae Soo, humor this bored prince," he smiled at her. "I've come back from war and all you can do is nag me? Let's have some fun together. You can teach me how to do the menial work you do best."

Soo stared at Wang So's devilish grin, noting his sharp canines and kind eyes. She finally relented, nodding.

Together, they removed the two bundles of silk, drenching them in the running water. Red silk darkened as water seeped into it and Soo struggled with her bundle as So effortlessly tossed his over his shoulder, soaking his frayed clothing. "Keep up, Soo!" he grinned, taking Soo's bundle from her arms and tossing it over his other shoulder.

They returned to shore and Soo rubbed each curtain with balls of soap until they foamed. She worked on both curtains, relieved that So was content to sit by and watch… until he was not.

"Let me," he said. So took a ball of soap and copied Soo's movements chuckling when the foamy soap disintegrated into the silk. "This is much more fun that learning about my father's conquests," he decided. "Maybe I'll quit being a prince and join you here."

Soo snorted and So pretended to look offended. "I'm not kidding, Hae Soo. I bet you'd love having me around. I'm very good company."

When Soo reached for her beating rod, So was quick enough to snatch it up before her hand could even reach it. "I think I have a better sword arm than you," he grinned.

With a long sigh, Soo watched as So beat the laundry. She refrained from noting that his sword arm did actually wring the water and wrinkles from the cloth better than what she could have done. So's ego was large enough as is- Soo did not to feed it.

Later, he carried both bundles of damp silk to the tied bamboo rods and tossed them over the tall beams, hanging and spreading them out to dry. Soo protested and So shushed her. "I'm having fun, Hae Soo," he claimed. "It's a dire crime to impede of a prince's fun- you know that, right?"

Once the laundry was done, Wang So turned to grin at Hae Soo. Opening his arms, he presented her with the two garnet curtains they had washed. "I did well, didn't I? Not so bad for a first timer, eh?"

Smiling, Soo nodded. "You did very well, your Majesty," she stated. "Now please leave before someone sees you."

Pursing his lips, So nodded slowly. "I should go shouldn't I?" he murmured. Huffing, So placed his hands on his hips. "Let's do this again," he smirked. "Laundry is fun, but nothing can beat annoying you for an entire day."

Before Soo could tell him off, the Prince placed a quick peck to her cheek before sprinting off. "Try not to think of me!" he called, disappearing from sight. Soo stared with wide eyes, her hand moving to cover the spot his lips had met her skin.

"Wang So, you idiot," she whispered.

It was only later that Soo heard realized she did not ache as much as she did after a hard day's work. Her knees did not whine or creak and her muscles did not strain at the smallest movement.

Smiling softly, Soo laid down onto her pallet in the water maids' dormitory. She stared up at the ceiling and frowned when an unholy thought pervaded her mind. I'm not in pain, she thought to herself. And then it hit her.

Under the guise of a puffed up ego and claiming to be bored, So had done all of her tasks. He had tricked her into resting for an entire day, tailing her and annoying her into teaching him what to do.

For the first time since she had become a water maid, Soo slept with a smile on her lips.


End file.
